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Pope not about to ditch celibacy By MAndlA ZiBi

A full moon shines its light on the Sea of Galilee, seen from the Benedictine pilgrims’ inn Pilgerhaus at Tabgha. See page 10 for Günther Simmermacher’s travelogue of the Sea of Galilee and the Pilgerhaus, where the Southern Cross pilgrims with Archbishop William Slattery will stay in August. (Photo: Günther Simmermacher)

OPE Francis clearly was not thinking about “abolishing” obligatory clerical celibacy in the Latin-rite Church when he made comments on the crisis of vocations in an interview with a German newspaper, a local analyst has said. Fr Anthony Egan SJ of the Jesuit Institute of South Africa said although clerical celibacy is “not Church doctrine but a discipline”, there are “very practical” reasons for it. But contrary to widespread headlines, the pope was not talking about it in his interview with Die Zeit. Pope Francis said it was time the Church started to think about ordaining married men to minister in remote communities facing a lack of priests. He stressed that removing obligatory celibacy is not the solution to the vocations crisis, but said he was open to studying whether “viri probati”—married men of proven faith—could be ordained. “We have to study whether ‘viri probati’ are a possibility. We then also need to determine which tasks they could take on, such as in remote communities, for example,” Pope Francis told Die Zeit. Two Brazilian bishops have requested ‘viri probati’ priests for large areas of the Amazon, where communities live for years without the Eucharist. “The pope is thinking aloud about extending the possibility of ordination to married men, Fr Egan said. “He is opening up the debate, but [what he said] is really nothing new.” Fr Egan noted that the idea has been debated since Vatican II, and even Pope Benedict XVI had explored it in the Synod of Bishops in 2005. “But it is not a theological issue, only a question of when the Church develops the will to do it.” The Jesuit noted that in the first centuries of Christianity there were married priests, but from around the early middle ages the practice of celibacy was consolidated in the West. He said it was “quite possible” to have “viri probati” priests in the not so distant future. “I also think that a lot of people will be shocked and resistant to the idea. But it all comes down to whether you want a priest or not, however uneasy you are,” he said. “For our part of the world, these priests would be an intelligent and viable solution to the problem of shortage. From a cultural perspective—where men wish to enjoy family life while also ministering to the Church—it could bring together the needs of Church with the needs of the community,” he said.

The concept of “viri probati” priests in the context of the modern Church was developed in several books by a South African bishop.

ishop Fritz Lobinger, retired of Aliwal North, envisaged such priests operating as “Teams of Elders” in regions were their ministry would be needed. “Such proven local lay leaders have emerged in thousands of priestless communities all over the world but especially in the southern hemisphere,” Bishop Lobinger, who now resides in Mariannhill, told The Southern Cross. “When such communities could not have Mass on Sunday and could not find a priest for conducting funerals they did not ask just one local, well-acceptable lay person to conduct lay religious services as a kind of substitute for the priest. Rather, they formed always a group of proven local lay leaders for these tasks, and this has spontaneously become a widespread pattern. On Sundays the people saw three lay leaders leading the service,” he explained. He stressed that the “teams of elders” were not meant to change the present form of priesthood but “to put a second, different, complementary one next to it.” There would be several important differences between the two kinds of priests. “The teams of elders would remain in their civil profession and do priestly work only in their spare time. They would remain with their families where they have proven to be good husbands and family fathers over many years. They would do priestly work only in the communities where they worked as lay leaders. They could not be transferred.” They would work only as teams, to avoid overburdening them, and if one of them had to leave and stay somewhere else the community would not be greatly affected. Their training would be in the form of evening classes and weekend courses, not in a seminary like full-time priests, and their work would complement that of full-time priests. “The teams of elders will not replace the consecrated priests. The present full-time priests will continue to concentrate on coordinating the ten or 20 communities they are already serving and on giving ongoing formation to the hundreds of lay leaders and the already ordained teams of elders,” said Bishop Lobinger. He admitted that at first glance the model “seemed difficult to introduce”, but he argued that in fact, “thousands of the big parishes in Continued on page 3

S outher n C ross Pilgrimage HOLY LAND • ROME •ASSISI • CAIRO 25 Aug - 8 Sept 2017 • Led by Archbishop William Slattery OFM For more information or to book, please contact Gail info@fowlertours.co.za or 076 352-3809

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The Southern Cross, March 22 to March 28, 2017

LOCAL

Memoir tells of healing after a life of crime By MAndlA ZiBi

D young people from the Salesian youth Movement at Mass on Calvary Hill outside the Bosco youth Centre near Johannesburg during a lenten hiking retreat.

Youths retreat on a hike

BOUT 50 young people took part in a Lenten retreat in the form of a hike around the beautiful environment of Bosco Youth Centre in Walkerville, south of Johannesburg. The members of the Salesian Youth Movement in Gauteng— from Ennerdale, Lawley and Finetown—reflected on the Temptation of Jesus in the desert. The season of Lent emphasises in particular the three pillars: fasting, almsgiving and prayer. “At some moments on the hike, the youth were asked to walk in silence in order to appreciate the beauty of nature and also to listen to God speaking to them in the silence,” said Salesian Brother

Clarence Watts. “We stopped to reflect on the three temptations and on Pope Francis’ advice on what to fast from. This was done in silence and each participant found their own space for reflection and meditation.” The youth were also encouraged to draw up their own “Plan for Lent” to make the most of this time of grace that will lead to inner conversion. The retreat concluded with Mass on Calvary Hill led by Salesian Father Lingoane SDB. “It was a truly beautiful experience for the young people and a good start to their Lenten journey, Br Watts said.

RUG abuse, violence and a multiple murder trial which resulted in one of the accused being sentenced to death are the main ingredients of Reggie Karam’s autobiography. Titled The Innocence of Guilt, Mr Karam’s book is a story of growing up in the racially-mixed, tough suburb of Mayfair, Johannesburg, during the 1970s. Although raised “from a rich Catholic heritage and education” Mr Karam veered off-course and began to lead a life of drugs, crime and violence. The now retired accountant and parishioner of Bryanston church in Johannesburg said his actions led to his older brother being murdered by his accomplices in the late ‘70s. And it was this brother who had tried to get him back on the right track. Of the three who committed the murder, one received the death sentence, later commuted to

life in prison. The autobiography is not all doom and gloom, however, Mr Karam said. “It also has a message of truth, justice and forgiveness inspired by a local parish priest, the late Fr Clayton Jackson of Turffontein.” Mr Karam said he lives daily with the “the fatal mistake of introducing this gang to my older brother who tried to guide me and two girls away from that life, and whose lives were taken for that reason”. Fr Jackson’s prayers, guidance and counselling took him and his family through the court case, giving them insight into forgiveness, loss and restoration. “My successful restoration to faith, mercy and forgiveness, as mentioned in my book, was also because of my attending the Alpha Course on three occasions at the Florida parish,” he added. The book is self-published and assisted by Reach Publishers. n Contact the author at jkaram@ telkomsa.net

The cover of the autobiography of Reggie Karam (left), which details a faith journey.

Mother T’s Co-Workers 30 years in SA STAFF REPORTER

like jacaranda season in Pretoria, the Marian shrine of ngome in Eshowe diocese, KwaZulu-natal, was an explosion of purple when (from left) Frs Brian Mhlanga OP, Evantus Kene SMA, Sibonelo Mbanjwa OMi, Andrew Knott OMi, Antony Mbeki OMi and Wayne Weldschidt OMi celebrated a lenten Mass there.

LAY movement founded by St Teresa of Kolkata celebrated 30 years in South Africa this month. Founded in the late 1950s, the Co-Workers of the Missionaries of Charity for the laity has a presence in around 140 countries. Margaret Cullis, a now retired tour operator in Durban, was a moving force in establishing the Co-Workers in South Africa in 1987. The following year, in November 1988, she was instrumental in arranging Mother Teresa’s tour of South Africa, making it possible for many to experience first-hand the reverence and love with which St Teresa cared for the poorest of the poor. This month the chapter of the Co-Workers from Shallcross, Durban, celebrated the milestone of 30 years of service and dedication to continuing St Teresa’s works of charity with a day of Lenten reflec-

Co-Workers of Mother Teresa from the Shallcross-durban chapter on a day of lenten reflection led by Fr Grant Emmanuel at Our lady of the Wayside church to celebrate 30 years of service and dedication in continuing Mother Teresa’s works of charity. (From left) Anne lee, Priscilla Reddy, Fr Emmanuel and Margaret Cullis. tion led by Fr Grant Emmanuel at Our Lady of the Wayside church. The Co-Workers of Mother Teresa was established to unite lay-

S outher n C ross & Radio Veritas 100 Years Fatima Pilgrimage The

1 - 10 October 2017

A spiritual journey to

Portugal & Spain Fatima • Lisbon Led by Fr Brian Mhlanga OP

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Pro-life table at uni attacked

PRO-ABORTION group attacked, vandalised and stole from the stall of Students for Life at the University of Cape Town. “I believe they have a right to oppose us to some level, however the way that it was carried out has infringed on our own rights to run a legitimate student society. The harassment and theft we have experienced needs be accounted for,” said Wandile Mhlongo, UCT Students for Life chairperson, said. At the end of a successful three-day campaign, three female students arrived and “became increasingly rude”. One of them then left to fetch five men, of whom four wore black T-shirts associated with the Economic Freedom Front, Black First-Land First and the PanAfrican Movement. The five men tore up pro-life posters and dismantled the society shade gazebo, shouted racial abuse at black pro-life students, and demanded that the pro-life students leave. University administration and security advised Students for Life to leave and to submit statements to the university. During the attack, a box containing pamphlets, student academic work, clothing and personal belongings went missing.

LOCAL

The Southern Cross, March 22 to March 28, 2017

Archbishop: Saving water the new normal By MAndlA ZiBi

E Veteran Vatican correspondent Robert Mickens, editor of La Croix International, makes a point during a round-table discussion on the four-year-old pontificate of Pope Francis in Rondebosch, Cape Town. The US-born, Rome-based journalist spoke in Pretoria, Johannesburg and Cape Town on a tour hosted by the Jesuit institute and Radio Veritas. listening to him are Southern Cross editor Günther Simmermacher (left) and Tim Harris of the Catholic leadership Academy (Photo: Sydney duval).

Dutch theologian to speak on pope’s Amoris Laetitia

LEADING Dutch theologian is visiting South Africa to deliver a series of talks on Pope Francis document on the family, Amoris Laetitia. Prof Jan Jans, a frequent visitor to South Africa, will talk in Johannesburg on April 8 on the theme “Playing Hide and Seek with Amoris Laetitia: The mixed reception of Pope Francis’ The Joy of Love”. Prof Jans is currently professor of ethics at Tilburg School of Human-

ities in the Netherland. Since 2001, he has been visiting professor at St Augustine College in Johannesburg. He also spoke in Cape Town on the theme “Amoris Laetitia: Where to from here? Some Thoughts on the Interpretation of the Document”, hosted by the Catholic Parliamentary Liaison Office. The Johannesburg talk will be on April 8 at 9:30am at the Pauline Conference Centre in Kensington. Entrance is R40.

VEN though water consumption in Cape Town had dropped and with what locals hope will be a rainy winter season approaching, the city’s archbishop has warned the faithful to not be “overconfident” and do all they can to conserve water. In a pastoral letter, Archbishop Stephen Brislin urged parish pastoral councils, priests, deacons, and religious “to take on a visible and sustainable water-conserving project such as a grey water system, or roof tanks for the church, presbytery or religious house”. He thanked the majority of Capetonians who have responded to the call to reduce the daily use of water, “but we know that this is not sufficient and more effort is still needed”. The archbishop expressed hope that the all important rains will come soon but urged that “we cannot afford to be overconfident and so must do everything we can to conserve our falling supplies”. The prelate said the present drought is a “sign of the times” which challenges all to be “good stewards of the precious water which is the source of our physical and sacramental life”. He said believers had something special to offer in a crisis. “A powerful spiritual motivation which can inspire us to save, share and use this vital resource justly. This divine motivation enables us to

How ‘viri probati’ priests would work Continued from page 1 the southern hemisphere are actually already well prepared for it. The teams of proven local lay leaders have already existed for years. The communities are already used to them; they have elected them, have corrected them, have accepted and encouraged them. They have listened to their sermons for years,” Bishop Lobinger said. He added that even for the priests of those parishes “all this will not be completely new. They have worked as the de-facto trainers and animators of their hundreds of lay leaders for many years”. “If young men ask us whether in view of these proposals they should still offer themselves and go to the seminary in order to become consecrated priests, the answer is also clear: yes, because we will always need both kinds of priests, the animatorpriests and the teams of elders,” Bishop Lobinger said.

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A sculpture of a water drinker by Tamar istrin, in a Jerusalem street. in a pastoral letter, Archbishop Stephen Brislin called for responsible water-use as a Christian witness. (Photo: Günther Simmermacher) avoid selfishness and moves and graces us to act consistently, joyfully, and generously so that once again we will be able to ‘draw from the wells of salvation’ (Is 12:3),” he said. This is an opportunity for

Catholics to demonstrate that the social teaching of the Church can make a difference to all. When the dams start filling up again, he said, “we must pray that we resist the temptation to return to the careless us of water, [and] we have the strength of will to make long-term efforts that are still necessary to be faithful stewards.” He said it is clear that care and conservation of water and other resources will become “the new normal” as the effects of climate change and its social tensions manifest themselves more in our lives. “We must give encouragement to civic authorities to lead courageously in the difficult task ahead of discerning how water will be shared between households, agriculture and business. What is clear is that ‘extreme consumerism”, as Pope Francis calls it, must swiftly end.” Archbishop Brislin said water is life and those who simply turn on a tap take it for granted, while those who struggle for water and have to get it from springs and rivers “appreciate it more”. “It is only when people go through severe drought and the taps run dry that urban dwellers become more serious about saving water,” he said. “The present crisis is asking us to dig even more deeply into our spiritual, intellectual and organisation resources to ensure that water continues to be the life not only for us but for our children’s children,” Archbishop Brislin said

The Southern Cross, March 22 to March 28, 2017

INTERNATIONAL

Church joins tech giants at festival By MATT PAlMER

T Fireworks explode in Seoul as South Koreans gather to celebrate the impeachment of South Korean President Park Geun-hye. (Photo: Paul Haring/CnS)

Church calls for unity after public oust corrupt president By SiMOnE OREndAin

ATHOLICS in South Korea called for unity following a unanimous ruling by the Constitutional Court to uphold the impeachment of now-former President Park Geun-hye. The bishops’ conference head called for “rebuilding the country through harmony”, and Seoul’s Cardinal Andrew Yeom Soo-jung put out a message saying Koreans should accept the decision regardless of what side they were on. Maryknoll Sister Jean Maloney, 86, has lived mostly in South Korea since 1953, when the Korean War ended. She told Catholic News Service: “What’s important is ... the unity among South Koreans and accepting the court decision. But that’s not so easy I think, for older people who are afraid of communism, and they revered the president’s father, who was really a dictator, so there is really a conflict between you might say pro-Park and anti-Park.” Hundreds of thousands of ordinary citizens had held weekly protests calling for Park Geun-hye’s impeachment after investigators linked her to a major corruption scandal involving some of the country’s largest conglomerates. The protests erupted in early December

after public outrage over separate incidents of corruption had been simmering for years. Franciscan Father Francis Lee Yongho of Seoul said: “What we need in our society is open and respectful discussions of different opinions, and to make a transparent and trustful society, every wrongdoing should be uncovered,” he said. “This is not about this president,” said Fr Lee. “It’s all connected to the 300 students who died by the shipwreck three years ago and also related to all those big companies, the labourers who were laid off unjustly in exchange for all this wealth to favour rich and powerful people.” Analysts have said the sinking of the Sewol ferry in April 2014 that left 304 dead, most of them high school students, brought to the fore the depth of corruption in the country. Fr Lee said public outcry and Pope Francis’ constant highlighting of the accident during his visit months later helped sustain a heightened sense of consciousness among Koreans. “Now people begin to reconnect that shipwreck tragedy and take it as their own problem, not just as random 300 people who are irrelevant to me; It can happen to me, to my kids,” he said. “So now is the time to reform before it’s too late.”—CNS

HE Pontifical Council for Culture brought faith into the mix at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival—a conglomerate of film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences that takes place annually in Austin, Texas 59-year-old Bishop Paul Tighe, adjunct secretary of the Council for Culture, attended the festival to be part of a panel called “Compassionate Disruption”. “On one level, it’s kind of strange because you’re wandering around the place,” said Bishop Tighe, “You’re certainly the only one in a collar and you’re possibly the only one with white hair.” At a festival known for its music concerts, movie premieres and tech company displays, the Catholic Church certainly stuck out. “People might be surprised there’s a Church presence, but there’s so many places where the Church is not invited any longer that it’s important to respond positively to invitation,” Bishop Tighe said. “Even if it looks a bit different or not like our usual gatherings.” Bishop Tighe is no stranger to speaking at unconventional festivals. He once spoke in front of 12 000 people at the Burning Man arts festival in Europe. “Despite all the sophistication, coolness, sarcasm and the irony at an event like this, I think if you speak with authenticity, there’s still a possibility of touching people’s hearts.” A faith session at SXSW is still a relatively new concept, said the interactive festival’s director, Hugh Forrest. Mr Forrest said he likes panels that take attendees out of their comfort zones. Mr Forrest said he sees the

irish Bishop Paul Tighe, a Vatican official who attended a high-profile film, music and media festival in Austin, Texas. (Photo: Bob Roller/CnS) Bishop Tighe appearance as the start of a potentially longer relationship with the Catholic Church. He dreams that one day Pope Francis might skype with an audience at SXSW. “This pope and the current Vatican is embracing technology,” Mr Forrest said. “It makes sense to connect with this crowd. They are in a sense embracing disruption very significantly. I think the pope has a leadership role few other people have. We like to showcase innovative, creative leaders.” In 2012, Pope Benedict XVI launched a massively popular Twitter account, which was later transferred to Pope Francis. A pope app for mobile devices also debuted in recent years. During one point at the festival, #GODatSXSW was Twitter’s No 1 trend in Austin. On a day that featured former Vice-President Joe Biden, billionaire and tech leader Mark Cuban, and other celebrities, being such a topic of discussion was no small feat. Bishop Tighe said young people are at the heart of the festival, which boasts thousands of ambi-

tious techies attempting to launch start-up web platforms. For some, it is the opportunity to get the attention of investors. It’s a highpressure situation for many. “The compassionate disruption is to say,” Bishop Tighe added, “fundamentally, you’re a person of value, a person of dignity and worth. God loves you and cares for you whether you pitch well or not.” During a panel discussion Bishop Tighe said in reference to the Church having a “Catholic brand” that the Church’s real strength comes from the local level. “I say, let’s look around the world and the dioceses that do this well,” he said. “Starbucks is Starbucks wherever you go. McDonald’s is McDonald’s wherever you go. Churches are different in the different parts of the world and that’s the richness of liturgy, the music, the language and everything else. “I do think there’s value in saying, ‘Let’s define standards and language that would work together’.”—CNS

Pope to visit Colombia NEW FOR 2017 29 AUG TO 10 SEP

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By CAROl GlATZ

OPE Francis will be visiting Colombia in September as the Latin American nation works to implement a new peace deal and rebuild after 52 years of war. The Vatican announced that the pope had accepted the invitation of President Juan Manuel Santos and the Colombian bishops. The trip, from September 6-11, will include visits to the cities of Bogota, Villavicencio, Medellin and Cartagena. Pope Francis will be the third pope to visit the nation after Bl Paul VI and St John Paul II. The previous papal visit there was 31 years ago, in 1986. The trip’s logo features the pope smiling and walking flanked by the

white and yellow colours of the Vatican on one side and an early indigenous symbol on the other. The motto is “Let us take the first step” (“Demos el primer paso”). Archbishop Ettore Balestrero, apostolic nuncio to Colombia, said: “The pope wants to come to meet the Colombian people; he comes for those who live in the cities and in the countryside; for the rich and for the poor; for the youth and for the elderly.” Archbishop Balestrero also noted that the pope will visit only Colombia on this trip: “It is rare that the pope visits only one country and that he stays there for four days. This shows the importance that Pope Francis attributes to this visit and, ultimately, to Colombia.” —CNS

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INTERNATIONAL

The Southern Cross, March 22 to March 28, 2017

Priest: Adoration made murder capital safe By BáRBARA BUSTAMAnTE

OT long ago, Juárez was considered to be one of the most dangerous cities in the world, due to drug trafficking violence and the constant struggles for power and territory between the cartels. However, the city of 1,3 million in the northern Mexican state of Chihuahua in has dropped off this list thanks to a significant decrease in the number of homicides: from 3 766 in 2010 to 256 in 2015. Although this drop can be credited to an improvement in the work of local authorities, for Fr Patrico Hileman, a priest responsible for establishing Perpetual Adoration chapels in Latin America, there is a much deeper reason: Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. “When a parish adores God day and night, the city is transformed,” Fr Hileman said. In 2013 the missionaries opened the first perpetual adoration chapel in Juárez. At that time “40 people a day were dying because two drug gangs were fighting over the city to move drugs into the United States”, he said One of the desperate parishes asked the missionaries to open a perpetual adoration chapel because “only Jesus is going to save us from this, only Jesus can give us security”. It took only three days to establish the first perpetual adoration chapel in Juárez. Fr Hileman recalled how one day, when the city was under a state of

Our lady of Guadaloupe cathedral in Ciudad Juárez

Pope Francis greets people during a visit at the Rome parish of St Magdalene of Canossa. (Photo: Alessandro Bianchi, Reuters/CnS)

Pope: Mouth shut, ears open equals peace By CAROl GlATZ

siege, a woman was on her way to the chapel to do her Holy Hour at 3:00 in the morning, when she was intercepted by six soldiers who asked her where she was heading. When the woman told them that she was going to “the little chapel” the uniformed men doubted her, because everything was closed at that hour. She proposed they accompany her to see for themselves. When they got to the chapel, the soldiers found “six women making the Holy Hour at the 3:00am”, Fr Hileman said. At that moment the woman said to the soldiers: “Do you think you’re protecting us? We’re praying for you 24 hours a day.” One of the uniformed men fell down holding his weapon, “crying in front of the Blessed Sacrament. The next day at

3:00 in the morning they saw him in civilian clothes doing a Holy Hour, crying oceans of tears”, Fr Hileman said. Two months after the chapel was opened, the pastor “calls us and says to us: ‘Father, since the chapel was opened there has not been one death in Juárez, it’s been two months since anyone has died’”. “We put up ten little chapels in a year,” Fr Hileman said. Fr Hileman said that “the greatest miracles occur in the early hours of the morning”. The early morning “is when you’re most at peace, when you hear God better, your mind, your heart is more tranquil, you’re there alone for God. If you are generous with Jesus, he is a thousand times more generous with you”.—CNA

Palestinian peacemaker: Loving our enemies is not optional By JUdiTH SUdilOVSKy

AMI Awad, 45, has been called every name in the book, from “unrealistic” to “traitor” and “collaborator”. The founder and executive director of Holy Land Trust also has had staff leave because of outside pressure opposing his organisation, which works with Israelis— including Jewish settlers—in peace dialogue. But Mr Awad sees all this as part of his journey as a peacemaker. “For me it is looking into the teaching of Jesus. Jesus talked about loving your enemy and loving your neighbour. When I put these two verses together I looked around and looked to see who was my enemy? Who was my neighbour? The answer was the settlers,” said Mr Awad. The Holy Land Trust runs on a shoestring budget and is supported mainly by individual donations and some institutional grants. “The test of being a peacemaker is the persecution and being rejected,” said Mr Awad. He said ten years ago he would have completely rejected the idea of sitting down with Israeli settlers. As a child, Mr Awad was resentful of the Israelis and wanted to fight, but his family insisted Palestinians must make peace. He was raised in a multidenominational Palestinian Christian family and educated in Quaker and Lutheran schools before receiving a bachelor’s degree in political science at Kansas State University and a master's in peace studies from American University in Washington. Mr Awad said the return of his uncle, Mubarak Awad, from studies in the US was the pivotal point in his young life. Becoming a pioneer of Palestinian non-violent resistance to the Israeli occu-

Palestinian Christian Sami Awad, founder and executive director of the Holy land Trust in Bethlehem. (Photo: debbie Hill/CnS) pation, the elder Mr Awad showed his nephew a new way of opposing the Israelis. His uncle’s work allowed young Mr Awad to meet Israelis who shared the Palestinian struggle, shattering the stereotypical image he had of Israelis. “My uncle let me see that yes, I can stand up for my rights, but I can do it with nonviolence for the sake of reconciliation with the enemy, rather than just resisting for the sake of resisting,” Mr Awad said.

ollowing the signing of the 1993 Oslo Accord, Mr Awad said, he felt most of the peace process had been aimed at segregating Palestinian and Israeli communities rather than uniting them. There was little involvement of the local communities in the process and, without that, the peace process was doomed to failure, he said. During the 2000-05 Palestinian uprising, Mr Awad joined Israelis and international leaders in leading weekly nonviolent protests. Getting arrested, detained, and beat up became a part of their weekly ritual. “My biggest challenge at that time was questioning if I was

doing what my faith asked of me. Jesus would be a non-violent person, he would not use weapons against occupation,” said Mr Awad. “My spiritual journey was to realise his message wasn’t against those he resisted, his insults and rebukes were mostly directed at his own religious leaders. It took me time to realise that when he spoke about the enemy it was to love them. It is a commandment; it is not optional.” In small dialogue groups that the Holy Land Trust now facilitates with Jewish organisations, Jewish settlers and Palestinians sit down together and discuss traumas they have suffered individually and as a community. Palestinians learn to understand how the Holocaust has affected the Jewish psyche and people’s ability to trust, and Jewish settlers hear about the trauma of Palestinians being expelled from homes and living under occupation. They begin to discuss and accept the equal claim of both to the land. There can be no real process of building mutual relations of trust between two communities if their traumas and fears are ignored, Mr Awad explained. It is equally important to understand that the settlers are in the land out of religious belief, with 80% of Jewish religious historical sites in the West Bank, said Mr Awad. Mr Awad tries to base how he lives his own life by asking himself what Jesus did in his daily life. “He walked through the Galilee teaching in synagogues, walking, teaching, preaching and healing,” said Mr Awad. “I look at him as the ultimate peacemaker. He never presented a political solution. He presented a kingdom vision as a value-based vision of how people can live together and get along and respect each other.”—CNS

EOPLE need to listen more if they want there to be peace in the world, Pope Francis said. Open “ears are missing, there’s a lack of people who know how to listen”, which is essential before there can be dialogue, he said during an audience with volunteers for a national help hotline, Telefono Amico Italia. “If only there were more dialogue—true dialogue, that is—in families, in the workplace, in politics, so many issues would be more easily resolved,” he told members of the association, which was celebrating its 50th anniversary. The helpline offers “an important service”, the pope said, especially given the degree of isolation and indifference that exists in the world, particularly in large cities.

So much communication, he said, is increasingly “virtual and less personal”, and the culture stresses “having and appearances” over solid values. Listening is not a very common occurrence, he said. It requires being quiet—”mouth shut”—as well as being patient and attentive, he said. God himself is the perfect example of a good listener, so take a cue from him when listening to someone in need, the pope added. This attitude of listening pushes people to “break down walls of misunderstanding, build bridges of communication, overcoming isolation and being closed up in one’s own little world”, he said. Through dialogue, people with differences can start to see the other, not as a threat, but as “a gift of God”, who asks to be heard.—CNS

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Preparing children for life

PRINCIPAL position appointment will be eﬀective 1 august 2017

The Board of Holy Family College would like to appoint a Principal who is fully committed to the ethos of Catholic Education and has the ability to inspire, motivate and empower others. This person has a chance to do something different in education. In our school we recognise that everyone is unique and has something to offer. If you are passionate about making a difference for every child, respect difference, value diversity and have the skills to build upon the strengths of our teachers, we would like you to lead our school to achieve further success.

We are looking for a Principal who: • Is a practising Christian who will cherish and support the strong Catholic ethos and tradition of our school • Is a highly effective and successful leader with the ambition, vision and skills to support the highest expectations for all • Is an outstanding teacher and believes in developing the potential of all of our children • Can nurture, inspire, challenge and motivate pupils and staff alike • Has a pioneering vision and courage to do something different • Has appropriate qualifications for the position • Has strong interpersonal skills, is approachable and a good listener • Has the clarity of thought and resilience to steer this school community on the next stage of its journey.

in return we oﬀer: • A school with a proud history • Enthusiastic children who are mostly keen to learn, motivated, work hard and respect one another • A dedicated staﬀ team • A welcoming, resourced and stimulating learning environment • An historical building that thrives when cared for • A supportive and experienced Board • Owners with strong links to the school.

Holy Family College is an equal opportunities employer. Please submit a motivation letter, a CV with three contactable references. Only candidates with suitable qualiﬁcations will be considered. Submission of a CV does not automatically entitle the applicant to an interview and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Closing date for applications is 14 April 2017. Email applications to: trathj@hfc.org.za

The Southern Cross, March 22 to March 28, 2017

LEADER PAGE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Editor: Günther Simmermacher

Sainthood for Hurley?

HE first step on the road to the possible canonised sainthood of Archbishop Denis Hurley, one of the great sons of the South African Church, has been made. Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, as archbishop of Durban, has invited the faithful to demonstrate their desire to have his predecessor canonised. If there is evidence of a popular devotion to Archbishop Hurley, then the archdiocese may give permission for a sainthood cause to be opened, to be run either by the archdiocese or by the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, the order to which the archbishop belonged. With the cardinal’s encouragement, a shrine was set up in Emmanuel cathedral at the grave of Archbishop Hurley, who died on February 13, 2004 at the age of 88. When people kneel on the prie-dieu at the shrine to pray for Archbishop Hurley’s intercession in their intentions, they will bear public witness to a devotion which unquestionably already exists. For many people, there is no doubt that Archbishop Hurley’s long life in the service of the Church and the country gave substance to what it means to lead a holy, saintly life. This does not mean that the archbishop was without sin or faults—no person is free of those—but that through his faith he always sought the grace to conquer his failings. Those who knew him will speak of Archbishop Hurley’s humility and kindness, his tolerance for the failings of others, his courage in ceaselessly advocating for justice, even at risk to his personal safety. These are indeed holy virtues. And they were rooted in his profound faith in Our Lord and his blessed mother, his openness to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, and his submission to the guiding hand of the Father. Those who have a devotion to the archbishop are certain that he is with God—among all the other saints, canonised or not— ready to intercede on their behalf. And their prayers for his intercession, made in public and privately, constitute the evidence for the desire of the faithful which the archdiocese of Durban needs to determine that a sainthood cause could feasibly proceed.

To that end, The Southern Cross this week on page 11 produces the prayer which has been approved for the faithful to recite. We hope readers will cut it out and use it in their prayer life, or display it prominently to promote the devotion to Archbishop Hurley. We are also making it available for download on our website (www.scross.co.za), so that those who wish to spread the devotion may do so on social media platforms. Once the archbishop of Durban—Cardinal Napier or his eventual successor—green-lights the cause for Archbishop Hurley, and the Vatican gives its nihil obstat (“nothing stands in the way”), those tasked with running the cause will begin researching the life of Denis Hurley. Though there is an abundance of documentation on his life, including his prodigious writings, the promoters will also seek testimony from many who knew the archbishop. This phase of the process can take many years. At the end of it, the documentation is submitted first to a diocesan tribunal and then to the Vatican. If the Vatican approves, the cause is passed to the pope who may or may not issue a “Decree of the Heroic Virtues of the Servant of God”. If he does, the candidate is declared “venerable”, and it requires an approved miracle to clear the way for beatification (again, subject to papal approval). A further miracle is then needed for canonisation. This means that, even if the cause is approved soon, the way to St Denis of Durban is going to be long. But public devotion to Archbishop Hurley, and later the sainthood cause, can contribute to greater social unity among South Africans. Archbishop Hurley confronted his prejudices and defeated them. For South Africans, in many of whom prejudices are ingrained, the son of a lighthouse keeper serves as a beacon towards the Gospel values of justice and peace. Aside from our personal petitions, it is in this domain especially where groups of Catholics can fruitfully invoke the intercession of Archbishop Hurley: as a patron for justice, for peace, for reconciliation, for tolerance— and for the poor, be it in worldly goods or in spirit.

The Editor reserves the right to shorten or edit published letters. Letters below 300 words receive preference. Pseudonyms are acceptable only under special circumstances and at the Editor’s discretion. Name and address of the writer must be supplied. No anonymous letter will be considered.

Prayer for rain

N this time of severe drought throughout many parts of our region, which is seriously affecting growth of crops, livestock—and the people of South Africa—there is a call to us for prayer. Can we unite in daily fervent prayer to Our Heavenly Father to grant us the blessing of rain? The following prayer by Fr Martin Pender, which is prayed in our parish in the Strand, Cape Town, may unite us all to be of one mind in our earnest intercession: Dear Lord, Source of all life and Creator of the universe, in your

Parish finance: A priest’s view

N the subject of sustaining a parish: transparency, accountability (agreed) and even some good preaching inspire parishioners to trust and take ownership of their parish and to pool together resources so that what belongs to them will endure in the years to come. I have learnt this in the short time I have been ordained, both in a low-income earning parish as well as in a high-income earning parish. If there is no trust, people will step back, no matter what parish you are in as the appointed priest. And while others might not share this sentiment, nevertheless my experience, though limited, has taught me this. Echoing the words of St Paul, we “all fall short of the Glory of God”, and sometimes honesty and transparency is not forthcoming from some (not all!) in Church leadership, or those in any leadership role for that matter. We cannot paint everyone with the same brush. Hard work and using the little that we have (Jn 6:9) will allow a parish to become progressively viable financially and, yes, even from time to time appealing for help from the outside. That’s why the Lenten and the Advent Appeals have their place. From my own experience, many people see nothing wrong with the parish priest using the parish car and parish petrol on his day off. Rightly so, because, God forbid some parishioner might need to be anointed on the priest’s day off. A priest never really gets a day off anyway because where there is a need, he has to act—even if he’s on holiday. While certain financial abuses exist within the Church, I think there are many other institutions that require our attention, especially prayers and action in speaking out against the evils of

great love for all you have created, you guide our world by the unfathomable mystery of your Providence. You never cease to provide for your people, giving us rain in due Opinions expressed in The Southern Cross, especially in letters to the Editor, do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editor or staff of the newspaper, or of the Catholic hierarchy. The letters page in particular is a forum in which readers may exchange opinions on matters of debate. letters must not be understood to necessarily reflect the teachings, disciplines or policies of the Church accurately. Letters can be sent to PO Box 2372, Cape Town 8000 or editor@scross.co.za or faxed to 021 465-3850

corruption that exist outside of the Church and affect many more people who are not necessarily affiliated to a religious institution. Here are four S’s that can perhaps decipher this puzzling quest to make a given parish viable both on the part of the priest and his parishioners: Sincerity, Sacrifice, Solidarity and, yes, even Subsidies. It goes without saying all four are challenging, but not impossible. Fr Raphael Thomas, Cape Town

Remember Jesus’ words to Peter

CAN understand the feelings of Leonie Arries (February 22) and others who have apparently been blessed with successful marriages feeling let down by aspects of the papal document on the family, Amoris Laetitia. But I must disagree with her statement that “nowhere in scripture did Our Lord say we may alter his Word”. In Matthew 16:19, Jesus addresses Peter as the future pontiff with the words: “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven… and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven”. I am amazed at the mercy of God towards King David, who committed adultery, made Bathsheba pregnant, then murdered her husband Uriah by sending him to his death in battle so that he, David, could marry Bathsheba. Yet God saw fit to apparently forgive David and have his Son, Jesus, born into the line of David.

season, helping the land to produce abundant food and the trees of the fields their fruit. In this time of need we humbly turn to you, and like the prophet Elijah, we pray that you will water the earth with rains from above. Summon the clouds from the ends of the earth, O Lord, so that the rain may soften our land with showers and bless its growth. Hear our prayer, O Lord, for we know that abundance flows in your pathways. We make this prayer through Christ, the Living Water and Wellspring of eternal life. Amen Sr MM Stanley, Cape Town It is worth remembering also the words of the gospel for this first Saturday in Lent: “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have come to call not the righteous but sinners to repent” (Lk 5:31-32). Indeed, God’s mercy is beyond human understanding. Paddy Ross, Cape Town

Chuckle offended

T times I feel offended by inappropriate “Church Chuckles” on the back-page of The Southern Cross, which as a Catholic periodical by definition subscribes to the pursuit of holiness. The quip about three clergymen of different religious persuasions visiting a brothel calls for a reply. To me, it firstly represented an unsuccessful attempt to be funny at the expense of the dignity and sacred calling of the shared priesthood of a Protestant cleric, a Jewish rabbi and a Catholic priest. Secondly, it diminishes the suffering and degradation of people in prostitution, some of whom may have been trafficked and others among whom who, through no fault of their own, might not have been equipped with the skills and education to provide for their dependants in another employment environment. There is a difference between fitting and inappropriate humour. As Jews, Protestants and Catholics alike, we try to follow God’s Ten Commandments. That not all of us, even among our clergy, have always been entirely successful in our efforts to obey all the Commandments at all times is a tragedy and a cause of prayer for contrition, conversion and remission of our suns—but not for chortles. Luky Whittle, Kroonstad n We apologise for any offence our “Church Chuckles” cause. In this instance, we understood the target of the joke to be the bystanders who exercised religious prejudice, not the clerics, whose purpose the joke does not explore.–Editor

JourNaLiSm iNTerNSHiP offers the opportunity of a

The internship position will suit a young journalism/media graduate

with talent and strong writing skills in English who wishes to gather hands-on experience in journalism in The Southern Cross’ Cape Town newsroom. The position is not paid, but published articles are remunerated and a stipend may be paid at the editor’s discretion. We cover daily travel costs within Cape Town. The length of the internship is 3-6 months, or longer by mutual agreement. While a Catholic background is not a requirement for the position, knowledge of the Church and affinity for its mission will be a distinct advantage.

e-mail applications with a covering letter and CV to: editor@scross.co.za Deadline: March 27, 2017 The Southern Cross reserves the right not to fill this position.

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PERSPECTIVES beings—and that it should consider not just their economic well-being but their complete development—was a genuinely new contribution.

t is important that Paul VI is the pope who authors this encyclical. Again, we are used to the era of papal globe-trotting but, before Paul VI, no pope in history had travelled beyond Europe and the Mediterranean. In the 1960s, Paul visited India, the United States, Latin America and Africa. He had even visited South Africa before he became pope as shown by the appearance of his name, Cardinal Montini, on the foundation stone of Regina Mundi church in Soweto. His concerns are the concerns of the whole world not just one small part of it. I think that we as Catholics can be genuinely proud of Populorum Progressio. It brought into clear focus work of the Church that was already emerging and then continued to strengthen in the years that followed: an engagement locally and globally with development issues, the growth of Caritas agencies, the creation of the Pontifical Commission for Justice and Peace and its diocesan versions, the foregrounding of “the preferential option of the poor”. Since he is looking at the whole world, he focuses on the inequalities between rich countries and poor countries. But the phrases he uses resonate for us no less within South Africa, and perhaps even more so in 2017 than they did in 1967: “Peoples in hunger are making a dramatic

Pope Paul Vi, whose message 50 years ago must be heard today.

Faith and Society

appeal to peoples blessed with abundance.” And: “There is also the scandal of glaring inequalities not merely in the enjoyment of possessions but even more in the exercise of power.” The team at the Denis Hurley Centre see the result of this every day in Durban in the way that the poor, the homeless, refugees and the marginalised are treated by wider society. But, in fact, we can see this in every part of South Africa, if only we opened our eyes to look. Although identifying the huge scale of the problem, Pope Paul does not believe it is beyond the scope of humanity to respond. But he warns us that the “road towards a greater humanity requires effort and sacrifice”. Perhaps we fall into the trap in South Africa of believing that those who do not have will see their lives miraculously transformed without any “effort or sacrifice” on the part of those who have. He also stresses that we cannot do this alone. This is a warning we can never hear too often. In 1967, South Africa was preoccupied with the specific injustices and inequalities of apartheid. Perhaps Pope Paul’s words were not as widely heard then as they were in other parts of the world. But they certainly need to be heard today. Again, when we translate his general challenge to the whole world into a specific challenge for us here in South Africa we can see how much more is left to be done: “Human must meet human, nation meet nation, as brothers and sisters, as children of God. In this mutual understanding and friendship, in this sacred communion, we must also begin to work together to build the common future of the human race.” Are we yet working together to build the common future of humans in South Africa or even in our own towns, let alone in the whole world? n Raymond Perrier is keen to hear from readers who have memories of the reaction to Populorum Progressio in South Africa, in seminaries, in religious communities or in parishes. Write to raymond@denishurleycentre.org

What to say to a pregnant teenager? Toni Rowland I FELT disturbed at how little focus there appeared to be on the issue of abortion in February when the country was reminded that it was 20 years since the Termination of Pregnancy Act came into force. Way back in 1996, leading to the parliamentary vote in November, there was a lot of awareness and attempts to stop the bill by various organisations, as was recounted in The Southern Cross last year. In Cape Town the Catholic Parliamentary Liaison Office called the faithful to the annual Mass at the cathedral to mark the anniversary of the abortion law being implemented. Marfam posted notices, but I know of few other Catholic initiatives. In Amoris Laetitia Pope Francis used strong words, saying that abortion is always a grave sin. In his document on the Year of Mercy, Misericordia et Misera, he referred to abortion again, and gave his permission to pastors to continue to forgive this sin. It is understood that even after many years a woman may have difficulty forgiving herself for having had an abortion. Are we in our families and parishes dealing with pro-life issues sufficiently well— not just in terms of abortion but also in the value of life-giving and life-promoting in a much broader view? It is an accepted view that experience has an impact, if reflected upon sufficiently. If one reflects on an experience and its related feelings, rather than suppressing them, the reality takes on a different hue.

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Pray with the Pope

Call to priesthood Prayer Intention: That young people may respond generously to their vocations and seriously consider offering themselves to God in the priesthood or consecrated life. HY is it that the winners of beauty contests are always going to save the world? They routinely say that they intend to dedicate their lives to underprivileged children or battered women or some ambitious development project which aims to eliminate a serious disease. Rarely do we hear of them again and yet the media continue to publish similar stories and we continue to read them avidly. I don’t think that these young women really do hope to make a difference using their new-found fame. And we want to believe them, I suggest, because we are inspired by the generous desires of young and talented people to give of themselves to a worthy cause. I suspect that the trouble with these wonderful but rather nebulous ideals is that there is very little to found and sustain them either on the level of practical organisation or personal spirituality. Who or what will help a generous soul focus these generous desires, sustain them in the long term and provide the individuals with the spiritual resources to commit for the long haul when the media have long forgotten them? NGOs can sometimes provide something in this line of support—but, generally speaking, NGOs are notoriously unstable organisations, and those working for them are frequently very transient. Many years ago I worked in an NGO which sheltered homeless people on the streets of Dublin. Most of the workers were young, talented, generous and unchurched. They did great work, giving up a few years of their young lives in the service of the poorest members of their society. Eventually most would move on to a professional career, marry and live good middle class lives, though at least one that I have kept contact with has worked for an international Catholic aid agency ever since and combined this with a happy marriage.

M Clearly we shouldn’t be influenced by feelings alone, but feelings highlight needs and values. The heart does have a message; as scripture says: “I will take away your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh” (Ez 36-26)

his week, around the feast of the Annunciation on March 25, I find it helpful to reflect on the incarnation in a simple, human, almost personal way. Consider the story. Mary was an unmarried teenager, but engaged (or betrothed, as they called it). We do see her as very spiritual and coming from a religious family. A visit from an angel with that all-important message must still have been quite a shock to her, and to her family. Think of Joseph and the stress and agony of mind he went through until an angel in a dream told him not to worry but go ahead and do all he could to support and protect

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Paul VI’s message to SA M ARCH 26 marks the 50th anniversary of Populorum Progressio—and it’s a great reason for the Church across South Africa to celebrate. However, don’t be ashamed if you did not know about the anniversary or indeed had never heard of the document. Although the Second Vatican Council ended in 1965, there was still work to be done and Pope Paul VI continued to produce far-reaching encyclicals in the years that followed. Next year we will have the 50th anniversary of his more famous encyclical, Humanae Vitae. This year gives us a chance to reflect on a less widely known but, some would argue, more influential document that continues to affect the Church and the world 50 years on. The Latin title translates as “On the Development of Peoples”. Such a subject might seem non-controversial to us now as we are used to popes commenting on climate change, unrestrained capitalism, workers’ rights and global inequality. But 50 years ago this was still relatively unexplored territory for the Church. One of the reasons why Council Fathers at Vatican II had so many experts—or periti—was because they were beginning to deal with issues like economic theory in which they had not been schooled. No wonder Archbishop Denis Hurley called it “the greatest adult education programme in the history of the Church”! Pope Paul uses this document to develop themes which start in Vatican II’s statement on how to be a “Church in the Modern World” (Gaudium et Spes). And he brings a dramatic and innovative approach to development which we need to keep hearing today. He focuses the whole document around “the complete development of each human person”. Bear in mind that up to that point, responding to the destruction of the Second World War and the disruption of decolonisation, development was seen very much in macro-economic terms: massive infrastructure projects or wholesale reconfiguring of national economies to maximise GDP. The idea that the test of development was how it impacted on individual human

The Southern Cross, March 22 to March 28, 2017

his chosen bride. Then in Luke’s account, Mary went off to visit her cousin, quite independently it seems. How many families when they discover a teenage pregnancy, in distress, send their daughter away? Or ask or consider any other questions. Then, bring God into the picture for all of those matters. We know Mary’s answer, her “Yes”. But every child who is conceived also asks for a “Yes” from its mother, her family and the baby’s father. The situation around an unexpected pregnancy arises only too frequently and still needs to be addressed in society and the Church in a wide variety of situations. Not every pregnancy is greeted with great joy initially. There are any number of reasons—from carelessness, promiscuity, rape, war rape, incest. Often there’s anxiety in a family that already has a number of mouths to feed. It is an issue that could face any family as we know of the high incidence of coerced sex in our society and young people’s own behaviour is not always premeditated. Continued on page 11

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y point is that generous ideals require communities of commitment in which they can be realised. In a way NGOs have attempted to fill the vacuum left by the decline of religious life in the West, but they are not the same animal. There is no substitute for the consecrated life and/or the priesthood if a person wishes to dedicate their entire life with every fibre of their being to God and to God’s people. As Fr Pedro Arrupe SJ once said: “Everything for the greater glory of God; more is not possible.” And apart from the goal of God and God’s will, religious life and the priesthood have centuries of experience behind them in how to form people in such a commitment and in the structures and spiritualities that will sustain it. Certainly, new forms of religious life and new ways of living out the priesthood will spring up under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, but all of these continue to draw from the tradition and build on the foundations of those who went before. Take Benedictine monasticism, for example. For a millennium and a half people have been giving themselves to God in this remarkably resilient but flexible charism which enables ordinary men and women to transcend their human limitations and to live lives of extraordinary holiness. There is no great secret about this. The monastic structure supports the monk or nun and keeps them going in the inevitable times of frailty. The rhythm of prayer,the work and the community life slowly form a person into what he or she aspires to become. The inspiration of the founder and the founder’s followers draws the person on and feeds the ideal. The same is true of how a man grows in the community of the diocese as a diocesan priest. It seems that in some places in the world these communities of commitment are declining. In others they are expanding. The demise of religious life and the priesthood have been predicted frequently, but always prematurely. As long as there are generous young people who feel attracted to follow Jesus Christ in an immediate and radical way and to make a difference in the Church and the world, these ways of life will survive and thrive. We pray for such young people, especially that their fundamental motivations should be good, noble and pure.

The Southern Cross, March 22 to March 28, 2017

COMMUNITY Matrics from Assumption Convent School, St Benedict’s College and Holy Rosary High School gathered for Mass and a breakfast to unite in prayer and friendship during their final year of schooling. (Front from left) Jacob Groenewald (head boy, St Benedict’s College), Patricia Zongololo (head girl, Holy Rosary School), and Monica Alves (Assumption Convent). Back: Roberto Coelho (head of religion, St Benedict’s College), Matilda de Freitas (Holy Rosary School), and Marilyn Cilengi (Assumption Convent).

Archbishop Jabulani nxumalo of Bloemfontein ordained Frs Michael Mapulanga, Simon Mphana and Harrison Banda to the priesthood, telling them to live their priesthood to the fullest, becoming salt and light to the world.

St Catherine’s School in Germiston, Gauteng, observed Ash Wednesday with the whole school attending Mass celebrated by chaplain Fr Ron Houreld OMi. Fr dominic Griego OFM Cap, newly-appointed vicar for education in Port Elizabeth diocese with Argentinian national rugby team members lucas noguera Paz and Ramiro Moyano after Sunday Mass at Corpus Christi parish. Bonny Pooley (left) of St Charles parish in Victory Park, Johannesburg, is part of a team of 30 parishioners involved in Sunday collection ministry. She was invited to join this traditionally male ministry ten years ago, following a 18 year stint as a catechist and now successfully recruits young parishioners to join her. Ms Pooley is seen with Samuel Baramoto, a recent addition to the team.

Traditional Latin Mass

little Eden Home for the intellectually disabled in Gauteng held a fund-raising fête. Here participants compete in a dog show, complete with lenten colours.

Holy Rosary School in Johannesburg’s Girl Guides, Scouts and Brownies celebrated Scouts Founders’ day, wearing their scout uniforms to school.

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Queen of the Holy Rosary parish in Kwadukuza, Stanger, held a Woman’s World day of Prayer celebration which included a procession dance with the Filipino Carinosa Folk music.

CHURCH

The Southern Cross, March 22 to March 28, 2017

Is the Church for or against women? Is the Catholic Church proor anti-woman? Two scholars debated that question— and came to different conclusions, as MAGGiE MASlAK reports.

OR Erika Bachiochi, the Catholic Church has been able to offer a genuine pro-woman theology which not only safeguards and protects her stance as a feminist, but also enhances her ability to be strong in all aspects of her life. Dr Mary Anne Case would like to differ. She believes that while Catholic feminism exists, the institutional Catholic Church is overtly anti-woman. These two legal scholars from different backgrounds met on the common stage of feminism at a “Great Debate” in Boulder, Colorado, hosted by the Aquinas Institute for Catholic Thought. The two women presented dissenting arguments for both sides of the spectrum on Catholic feminism and tackled the question: is the Church anti-woman? Dr Case, a law professor at the University of Chicago, answered in the affirmative, while Erika Bachiochi, a visiting fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, answered in the negative. “In my lifetime, the Church that had made me a feminist betrayed me,” said Dr Case. “I think the Church has let us down, and I think the Church has let us down relatively recently,” she said. “The early Church was very much not anti-woman. The gospels are not anti-woman,” she said, noting that the Catholic Church of the past was not anti-feminist. However, Dr Case argued that when the Church definitively said “no” to priestly ordination for women in the 1970s, it closed the

Pro & Contra: Erika Bachiochi and dr Mary Anne Case door to half of the population of the Church. “The problem with the Catholic Church is that all authority flows from ordination. The magisterium—as it need not be—is composed of men and cardinals,” Dr Case said, suggesting that women should at least be allowed in the decision-making that flows from the hierarchy of the magisterium. The law professor spoke at the debate wearing a button from the 1970s on her shirt that said: “If you aren’t going to ordain women, stop baptising them.” This, she said, is a representation of the economy of salvation: if women cannot be priests because they do not image Christ, how can women become saved in the eyes of the Church, since salvation can arrive only through the extent that Christ images us?

‘Misbegotten males’? Dr Case also pointed to some of the Catholic Church’s greatest thinkers, such as St Thomas Aquinas, who believed that “women are necessarily in a state of subjection”, and that females are “misbegotten males”. She also highlighted that the Sistine Chapel’s “Creation of Man” is indeed that of a man—and does not include Eve. Within the last 50 years, Dr Case believes, the Church shifted away from the idea that men and women are equal when it introduced the

idea of complementarity, particularly seen in Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body, saying that placing characteristics or roles on each gender negates their equality. “There should be no fixed notions concerning the role of males and females,” Dr Case suggested, and pointed to St Augustine’s notion that the soul does not have a sex. Ms Bachiochi, a visiting fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, a conservative advocacy group, responded that “papal teaching has rejected the essentialist view that woman and men possess mutually exclusive fixed character traits”. Sexuality does not take away from the equality of men and women, she said, but simply makes them “distinctive”. While Ms Bachiochi was once a pro-choice, socialist feminist, she has since shifted her beliefs towards the teachings and beliefs of Catholicism.

More female voices needed She agreed with Dr Case on a number of levels, saying that “there should be more women’s voices in the Church”. However, the most notable differences between the two scholars was on the point of clerics and sexual teachings. While Dr Case argued that women can and should be ordained Catholic priests, Ms Bachiochi said the notion reeked of clericalism. “I have no less authority than a priest as a baptised Christian,” Ms Bachiochi said. “A priest has authority to represent Christ in a sacramental way, and I have the authority to represent Christ in every other area of my life,” she said, adding that the focus on female priests can also take away from the good work that professional and religious women are already doing within the Church. However, Dr Case pointed out

A young woman in a church. in a public debate, two women discussed whether today’s Church is pro- or anti-women. that men in the Catholic Church “have all of the opportunities, and then some. How can the Church not be anti-women…if women are not part of the decision making?” To this, Ms Bachiochi agreed that more female voices are needed within the Church, but did point to the Pontifical Council of the Laity, which seeks female voices, and other prominent female Church leaders. Ms Bachiochi said she sees a fundamental differences with the modern idea of feminism, which she said claims that abortion and contraception rights are the capstone to the whole movement. She has found in her own experience that these same notions can also be the downfall to women. Instead, Ms Bachiochi suggested that Catholic feminism indeed exists, and is protected by the Church, precisely because of its teachings about sexual and reproductive rights, particularly Natural Family Planning (NFP). “I believe that Catholic Christianity, and in particular the controversial sexual teachings of the

Catholic Church, are deeply prowoman. It was precisely these teachings on monogamy, divorce, birth control, abortion and infanticide that attracted women in the first century into the Christian fold,” Ms Bachiochi stated. “As a feminist, NFP does something that contraception neglects… it gets men to think about the reality,” she noted, saying that through NFP, less pressure is put on the woman to take the pill or get an IUD, and more emphasis is placed on men and their responsibility in the sexual act. She also mentioned that the Catholic Church in particular has always been pro-woman, as seen through its recognition of female saints, political leaders, and scholars, and its production of educational systems and healthcare centred around the good of women. Ms Bachiochi also noted that “Mary, the Mother of God, is heralded by the Catholic Church as the single greatest human that has ever lived, saying: “The greatest among us are not the clerics, but the saints.”—CNA

Female advisory group in Vatican ‘a good start’ By EliSE HARRiS

NEW advisory group for the Pontifical Council for Culture is being hailed as the beginning of a greater representation of women in leadership at the Vatican. This month the council presented its 37-member “Women’s Consultation Group”, which it established in 2015 as a way to give women a voice in places where it can frequently be lacking in the Vatican. Member Donna Orsuto, director of the Rome-based Lay Centre, called the group “a good start.” “I think there are many other ways, or in the future there will be many other ways in which women can be more present, more involved in the Church, especially in the Roman curia,” she said, “but I think this is a very good start.” Ms Orsuto voiced her hope that the group would be able to “work together...as women, but also with the council”. “This idea of men and women working together for the good of the Church and society” is key, she said, adding that she’s “very pleased that the focus isn’t just on women and women’s issues”. Council president Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi said that, like many other Vatican departments, “inside of my dicastery, I didn’t have any women at the management level. They were only there in an administrative sense as secretaries.” And while the women who are part of the consultative group aren’t necessarily department managers, the presence of the group serves as a response to “this lack of the presence of women in the Roman curia”. Cardinal Ravasi said he didn’t

dr Consuelo Corradi and irish ambassador Emma Madigan, members of a new women’s group. form the group to appease those who were angry about the lack of women in Church leadership, and nor did he want the women to be “a ‘cosmetic’ element in the sense that they were [only] a symbolic presence” or a mere viewpoint on “an only male horizon”. Instead, he simply wanted “a feminine perspective” over every activity the dicastery does, including official documents. A woman’s viewpoint, he said, “can see beyond our gaze” and offers a perspective that’s different and at times unexpected. “It’s a question about interpretation, of prospective, of analysis, of judgment—above all—and also of proposal,” he said, explaining that the group will participate actively in both the preparation and duration of the council’s next plenary meeting. Coming from different cultures and professional backgrounds, the 37 women who are currently part of the group serve a three-year term and meet three times annually to discuss ideas and possible projects. Initially started in June 2015, the group was born from the Pontifical Council for Culture’s February 5-7 plenary assembly that year, which

was dedicated to the theme “La Cultura Femminile” (“The Feminine Culture”). Several women were asked to help prepare for the plenary, and worked in two separate groups with members of the council to organise the event and define specific topics of conversation. After the plenary, Cardinal Ravasi decided to establish the group as a permanent entity. He invited the women who prepared the plenary to stay, and reached out to several others from various professions, including ambassadors, journalists, doctors, professors, actresses and teachers. In their annual meetings, the group focuses their discussion on proposals surrounding the dicastery’s work in the fields of artificial intelligence, neuroscience, sport and human anthropology.

onsuelo Corradi, coordinator of the Women’s Consultation Group and vice-rector for research and international relations at the LUMSA University of Rome, told journalists that the theme that links all of the members together is “the female difference”, because “there’s a perspective from women [and] there’s a way of living human life that’s specific to women”. Released during the official presentation of the group was their first project—a magazine titled Cultures and Faith which includes contributions from various members of the group in different languages that reflect on a variety of

different topics. Group members from various fields and cultures who attended the presentation—including the Irish ambassador to the Holy See, Emma Madigan—voiced their hope that the group would provide a platform to generate creative ideas given their professional backgrounds, and to foster greater collaboration with men on important issues. Italian psychologist Dr Laura Bastianelli said she sees the establishment of the group as a direct response to Pope Francis’ call for a greater inclusion of women in the life of the Church, and is hoping to use her background in psychology to help shape the council’s projects. Ms Madigan told Catholic News Agency that she hopes to use her diplomatic experience to help foster dialogue and open channels within the Vatican. As an ambassador, “you want to understand better your interlocu-

tors,” she said, explaining that for a diplomat, “dialogue is a core value and activity”. When it comes to the Vatican, “you’re interacting with priests, dealing pretty much with the pastoral issue. You can understand some of what they’re going through,” she said, explaining that she also tries to present and discuss issues important to Ireland and to share information in order to foster greater mutual understanding. She noted that in the Vatican, “it is a leadership that is male, but it is changing”. There is “still plenty of room for growth in this area,” she said, but recognised the group as “a practical example of saying ‘we want a women’s perspective’.” While many say that “we value women and want to bring them into the fold”, the ambassador said, the group “is actually a practical sign that that’s happening. It’s a beginning. You have to start somewhere.”—CNA

The Southern Cross, March 22 to March 28, 2017

TRAVEL

To stand where Jesus once stood Last month GünTHER SiMMERMACHER made a private visit to the Holy Land. In the second of a series of four articles, he visits the Sea of Galilee

HY, my friend Rimon demanded to know, do we celebrate bears on Valentine’s Day? Bears are dangerous, not cuddly. Why don’t we rather have Valentine’s donkeys? Those animals are cute, useful and harmless, he pointed out. Then Rimon, a Catholic Palestinian tour guide, produced a photo of a donkey decked out in Valentine’s Day red which was making the rounds on Facebook. With a couple of days to go to Valentine’s Day, I teased my beautiful wife that I’d get her a Valentine’s donkey. On Valentine’s Day we stayed at the Pilgerhaus, a Benedictine-run guesthouse right on the shores of the Sea of Galilee at Tabgha. As we walked on the grounds before breakfast that morning, we were— I’m not making this up—serenaded by four donkeys on the slope behind the Pilgerhaus. And having performed their choral Song of Eeyore, the four donkeys trotted off, in single file. Serendipity or God having fun with us? Either way, my promise of the Valentine’s Donkey was kept, the lack of red dress compensated for by the quantity of them. The Pilgerhaus is one of the Holy Land’s oldest surviving Catholic guesthouses, having first opened in 1889. And none has a location as perfect as this place. There are other well-situated Catholic inns in Galilee. In Tiberias, the Casa Nova is right in the harbour on the Sea of Galilee. Several places in Nazareth are near the church of the Annunciation. And the Franciscan Sisters’ guesthouse on the Mount of Beatitudes has a

The Sea of Galilee glistens in the morning. This might have been the view the Risen lord had as he made the fish breakfast for the disciples • Cafeteria and garden of the Pilgerhaus in Tabgha • Meditation spot on the shore of the Sea of Galilee at the Pilgerhaus. (Photos: Günther Simmermacher) beautiful pastoral setting. But at the Pilgerhaus, you are right in the heart of the theatre of Jesus’ Galilean ministry. The comfortable inn is located directly on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. Various little spots have been created to invite prayerful reflection and meditation by these famous waters. And if you want to take a dip in the lake, in imitation St Peter, you are welcome to do so. Two sites within a few hundred metres of the Pilgerhaus record key events in the Gospel: the miracle of feeding of the multitude, and the fish braai which the risen Christ prepared for the disciples before entrusting what would become the Church to St Peter. Capernaum, Jesus’ headquarters in Galilee, is about 3km by road; less by foot on the path directly from the Pilgerhaus.

The Fifth Gospel More than anywhere else, at the Sea of Galilee one can be immersed in the Gospel. What on the page is abstract becomes real here. The writer Fr James Martin SJ pinpointed this well in his marvellous book Jesus: A Pilgrimage. On a private pilgrimage he came to a place called the Bay of Parables, very near to the Pilgerhaus. Here, tradition holds, Jesus would preach from a boat to his audience on the shore. As Fr Martin stood at this place, the parable of The Sower came to his mind. “All around us was this: rocky ground, fertile ground, stony ground, and even a huge thorn bush,” he writes. “It dawned on me that when Jesus used objects from nature to convey his message—seeds, rocks, birds, clouds, water—he may not have been talking in generalities but about these things right here. Not ‘Think about rocky ground’, but ‘Look at that rocky ground’. Not ‘Those people are like thorns’, but ‘Those people are like those thorns’. “It grounded the Gospels, and Jesus, in a way that I never could have imagined. It made me think more about the way Jesus drew on nature in his parables.”

This is the sort of thing people mean when they speak about the Holy Land as “The Fifth Gospel”. If one has been to the Holy Land as a pilgrim, one understands Scripture so much better, especially when led by a Christian guide who understands the Gospel. At the Sea of Galilee one sees what Jesus saw. One stands where Jesus stood—and if it is not that exact spot then it’s one just like it very nearby. One can imagine the Lord walking here, surveying the majesty of the Golan Heights and seeing what tomorrow’s weather might bring, looking at the lake to determine whether it will be still or in need of admonition to stop raging. As one contemplates the proximity to the actual man Jesus, Scripture ceases to be abstract. Jesus becomes tangible. What a gift that is to a Catholic soul!

A pilgrims’ house The Pilgerhaus—literally, “pilgrims’ house”—is one of the more comfortable Catholic guesthouses, and it is run with teutonic preci-

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This social media image of a “Valentine’s donkey” was the subject of a running joke.

The altar of the church of the Multiplication in Tabgha, below which is the rock which has been venerated since at least the 5th century as that on which Jesus performed the miracle of the loaves and Fishes, and the famous mosaic of the miracle from that original church.

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Franciscan friars Freddy Albarez and Jorge Fernandez with their monastery’s dog Carmelo, also called Friar Bigotón. The stray dog was adopted by the Franciscans in Cochabamba, Bolivia. See page 11 for a photo of Friar Bigotón preaching to fish. (Photo: Kasper Mariusz Kaproń OFM)

Meet the barking Franciscan

S The new shrine for Archbishop Denis Hurley at his grave in Durban’s Emmanuel cathedral will be officially opened on March 19, the 70th anniversary of the archbishop’s episcopal ordination. all citizens,” said Hurley biographer Paddy Kearney. Raymond Perrier, director of the Denis Hurley Centre, noted that “Pope Francis keeps reminding us that we are the ‘Church of the Poor’. Hurley’s example drives the work for the poor that continues in his name. With our prayers, and the work of the Spirit, perhaps in time he will be St Denis of Durban, patron of the poor.” Also see page 2

AINT Francis of Assisi is the patron saint of animals—so it is fitting that one of the newest “members” of the Franciscans should be a dog. The Franciscan monastery of Cochabamba in Bolivia announced on Facebook that their new dog, Carmelo, had joined their order— with photos of the dog in a tiny brown Franciscan habit to prove it. Carmelo was even given a “religious” name: Friar Bigotón—Spanish for “moustache”. Before he joined the monastery,, Friar Bigotón lived as a stray. But he clearly enjoys life in the community. “His life is all about playing and running,” Fr Jorge Fernandez told the animal website TheDodo.com. “Here, all of the brothers love him ver y much. He is a creature of God.” But running and playing aren’t the dog’s only duties. Photos posted to Facebook by the community’s Fr Kasper Mariusz Kapron OFM shows Carmelo “preaching to the fish”.

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Friar Bigotón's biggest role, however, is in helping other puppies like him. Carmelo’s adoption was made possible by a local animal rescue group, Proyecto Narices Frías (Cold Nose Project), which hopes his stor y will ser ve as an inspiration for more monasteries—and individuals—to open their doors to needy pets. “If only all the churches of our country adopt a dog and care for him, like Friar Bigot ón , w e a re sur e th at th e pa rish io ners wo uld follow that example,” the group posted on Facebook. Much as photographer Fr Kapron was pleased with his photos going viral, he also admonished that there are more important stories in the world. Posting a galler y of children on his Facebook page, the Polish-born friar wrote on March 8: “The pictures of the dog who lives in our convent created international news. To o the media and the press, photos of these children are not the news. This is the world today.”

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STA AFF REPORTER HIS weekend crowds are gathering at Durban’s Emmanuel cathedral to pray at the newly opened shrine to Archbishop Denis Hurley, who was ordained bishop of Durban 70 years ago this week. Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, Archbishop Hurley’s successor as archbishop of Durban, has given permission for a shrine and has encouraged acts of public devotion. The cardinal recently said that such devotions are the evidence that the archdiocese needs to open a cause for the canonisation of Archbishop Hurley. Following the Catholic custom, after he died on February 13, 2004, the archbishop was buried in his own cathedral, in a grave just in front of the Lady Chapel which he loved. The shrine marks this out as a special place of prayer with a prie-dieu (or kneeler), a candle that will remain lit perpetually, and a special pray yer invoking Archbishop Hurley’s example. The date for the launch of the shrine was chosen because it was 70 years ago, on March 19, 1947 that the 31-year old Fr Denis Hurley was consecrated bishop—at the time the youngest bishop in the whole Catholic world. When the vicariate of Durban was elevated to the status of archdiocese in 1951, he also became the world’s youngest archbishop. Archbishop Hurley retired in 1992 and then served as the parish priest of Emmanuel cathedral parish. Masses will be celebrated over this weekend by Mgr Paul Nadal, who served as Archbishop Hurley’s last vicar-general, and by a number of Hurley’s fellow Oblates, including Bishop Barry Wood, Natal provincial Fr Vusi Mazibuko, and Fr Chris Richmond, superior of Sabon House, the archbishop’s last community. “Durban City Council has recognised Hurley’s importance with a street and now a museum dedicated to him; the Church is now formally encouraging us to pray for his intercession by the creation of this shrine. It is clear that he is an inspiration to Catholics and to

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tended vespers in the adjacent church of the Multiplication, joining another visiting couple and a small group of German Benedictines who live in the monastery behind the church. It was very beautiful, very prayerful. We had missed a special event by only a day: a Mass to mark the reopening of the church’s atrium, 20 months after it was severely damaged in an arson attack by Jewish terrorists (as even Israel’s Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, usually no great friend of Christians, called them). Cardinal Rainer Woelki of Cologne, president of the German Association of the Holy Land, presided at the Mass which was also attended by Israeli President Reuven Rivlin. I doubt anybody asked the president why the Israeli government gave less towards the renovations than initially negotiated—the bulk of the funds came from donations. Now the church, built in 1982 according to the architecture of the 5th-century basilica on that spot, is as it was before that dreadful night in June 2015. Even the little fish pond in the atrium has been repopulated. As a keen photographer I was delighted to be able to get up close to the usually cordoned-off altar with the 5th-century mosaic of the multiplication in front of it, and below it the rock on which Jesus is reputed to have performed the miracle. The famous mosaic is reproduced on many souvenirs, but I wonder how many people who see these reproductions notice an odd thing about it: there are the two fish but only four loaves of bread. Could those Byzantines not count? The answer is profound: the mosaic is below the altar, and the fifth loaf is (nominally) on the altar—in the form of the Eucharist. Not so stupid after all, those Byzantines. n The Southern Cross’ pilgrimage to the Holy Land and Italy with Archbishop William Slattery is booked to stay in the Pilgerhaus in August. See www.fowlertours.co.za/slattery for more information.

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sion. But more than the comfort, the focus is on the spiritual side of things. Most rooms have no TV because you don’t come here to watch CNN. There is a chapel, and on the shore of the lake, there’s a simple Mass site where a basalt boulder serves as the altar and tree logs as the pews. On the other hand, there is also a cafeteria/bar, with outdoor seating overlooking the Sea of Galilee. This can be a place for some end-of-day fun—which surely Jesus and his disciples made time for, too—or for reflection with a glass of red wine as one watches darkness descend on the lake. The full moon will throw its light on the waters, creating an iridescent effect that inevitably arouses thoughts of the divine. I noticed small groups of pilgrims and volunteers using the bar facility to discuss their faith, perhaps with a little wine or Taybeh beer helping them to loosen inhibitions to speak about things that otherwise may be too personal and difficult to articulate. On our first evening, we at-

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The Southern Cross, March 22 to March 28, 2017

CLASSIFIEDS

Sr Maria Senn CPS

RECIOUS Blood Sister Maria Johanna Senn, an accomplished artist and poet, died on February 14 in her native Austria. She was 86. Born on June 5, 1930 in Tannheim, in Austria’s Tyrol region, as the second of five children of Dr Johannes Senn and his wife Friederike, she was baptised with the name Sylvia. Her education was greatly influenced by the difficulties of the world war, so she transferred from a grammar school a vocational school in Innsbruck. There, in 1950, she received her diploma in sculpture. Her talents were recognised and she was immediately employed in a Church-owned art studio. On February 1, 1956 she entered the Missionary Sisters of the Precious Blood in Wernberg, Austria, taking the name Sr Maria Johanna. Her superiors also recognised her artistic talent and fostered it. In 1961, after her final profession, Sr Maria Johanna was sent to Mariannhill, KwaZulu-Natal. There she received a degree in fine arts at the University of Pietermaritzburg. In 1967 she opened the liturgical art department in Mariannhill. From the beginning she envisioned the integration of African art into liturgical décor, design and decoration. As a sensitive and thoughtful artist she recognised talent in those she met and had a special gift of mentoring them. Their skills flowered under her advice and expertise and they matured into creative and unique artists, specialising in sculpture, pottery, design, and many other media of expression still seen in Africa today. Among the most prominent African artists with whom Sr Maria Johanna worked was Ruben Xulu, and their love of sculpting in local wood fostered his artistic vocation. Inspired by the spirit of the Sec-

ond Vatican Council, she always listened to the dreams of local communities for their places of worship. Sr Maria Johanna drew up plans for the building and renovation of countless churches, especially in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape. Br Herman Krausert CMM and his team of skilled blacksmiths brought her designs into reality in altars, tabernacles, lecterns reflecting indigenous cultural symbols.

ister Maria Johanna also created churches and chapels in Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Botswana, as well as the chapel of the generalate of the Mariannhill Missionaries in Rome, Mariannhill Convent, St Mary’s Hospital Chapel and for Precious Blood Sisters in Sangsam-li, South Korea. Although diligent, creative, active and busy, she retained a quiet contemplative spirit that was shown in her other talents in ceramics, pottery, sculpting, and painting. Together with some sisters from St Mary’s Hospital in Mariannhill, Sr Maria Johanna also wrote meditations and texts for slideshows about the spirituality of the Precious Blood. She also illustrated many catechetical books which her fellow Precious Blood Sister Dr Theodula

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Müller had written for the pastoral institute at Lumko and for the archdiocese of Durban. Bishops from all over Africa asked her to bring their mottos to life for their episcopal consecrations. Their croziers, rings and mitres reflected just that in their colour, symbols and shapes. Tapestries, vestments, and altar cloths were designed by her and made by the women at St Michael’s mission Weaving Centre and the liturgical vestment department in Mariannhill with the skills they learned from Sr Cassinai Theiss and Sr Gereon Custodis. Sr Maria Johanna was also a gentle poet and the pinnacle of her writing career was the publication of an anthology of poems by the CMM mission press at Reimlingen. Her interest in eastern religions intensified over the years. She felt drawn to meditation and contemplation; her texts and works bear witness to that. Whenever it was possible for her to do so, she withdrew to the Sediba Meditation Centre at Hartbeespoortdam run by Fr Sepp Anthofer, or to the Buddhist Retreat Centre at Ixopo, or to the Capuchin Sisters at Melville. Over the years the longing to live the life of a hermit grew ever stronger in her and at this same time, she also began writing icons. Her wish could be fulfilled when she returned to Austria in 1997 to live on her own in a flat. There she had the silence which enabled her to write, paint icons and create gold graphics etched on dark backgrounds. In 2008 Sr Maria Johanna returned to Africa to design a chapel for a newly-built centre for the handicapped in Kibilizi in Rwanda. She returned to Austria in 2012, no longer able to live alone and succumbed to a series of small strokes which left her bed-ridden. She will be sorely missed by her fellow Precious Blood sisters.

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IN MEMORIAM

SMITH—Ted. died March 28, 2006. My dearly beloved, how much i still miss you. Have many photos, but long to hold you in my arms again. From your loving wife Carmen and all the family. SMITH—Michael. died April 23, 2007. dearly beloved son still miss you and our Sunday afternoon chats. From your ever-loving mother, Carmen and all the family. VOGEL—Mervyn. died March 23, 1996. May Christ, who died for you, admit you into his garden of paradise. May Christ, the true shepherd, acknowledge you as one of his flock. May he forgive all your sins and set you among those he has chosen. May you see your redeemer face-to-face and enjoy the vision of God for ever. May we who grieve our departed children, graciously ask the God for understanding and acceptance. Mom, dad and Tracy

PERSONAL

ABORTION WARNING: The truth will convict a silent Church. See www.valuelifeabortionisevil.co.za

ABORTION ON DEMAND: This is legalised daily murder in our nation. Our silence on this issue is the reason why it continues. Avoid pro-abortion politicians.

PRAYERS

PSALM 70: Hasten, O God, to save me; come quickly, lord, to help me. May those who want to take my life be put to shame and confusion; may all who desire my ruin be turned back in disgrace. May those who say to me, “Aha! Aha!” turn back because of their shame. But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who long for your saving help always say, “The lord is great!” But as for me, i am poor and needy; come quickly to me, O God. you are my help and

Loving Father, we thank you for the life, vocation and ministry of your servant Denis Hurley, our bishop, brother and friend in Christ. We pray that his work for justice and peace; his loving care for the poor and marginalised; and his vision for a reformed and renewed Church, may continue to inspire us with increased vigour. Grant that the gift of the Spirit may enable us to act in harmony to establish your kingdom in our lives, our work and our world as we strive to follow Denis Hurley’s motto: “Where the Spirit is, there is freedom!” Listen kindly to the intercession of your servant Denis on our behalf, and grant us the favour of his patronage in your kingdom. We pray that in Christ your Son, all may be sanctified, all may be one. Amen.

my deliverer; lord, do not delay. LENTEN PRAYER: God of infinite love, i thank you for this reminder of your love and your call that we be more patient, gentle and compassionate with others. Here in the middle of lent, turn to you to beg for your help. Please soften my heart. Help me to let go of judging others.i ask you this, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

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What to say to a pregnant teenager? Continued from page 7 Sexuality in general and pregnancy in particular are issues that should be part of family faith-sharing and coupledialogue. These are issues where parents model and share their values. These are issues that the Church could address in parish homilies, adult and teenage courses on sexuality, and also in justice and peace. It is opportune that the feast of the Annunciation falls in March, Human Rights month in South Africa. I have referred groups to the Church’s Charter

of Family Rights, many of which are also enshrined in our Constitution and other international charters. Marfam’s family theme for 2017 includes the well-known and all-encompassing quote from the prophet Micah, “Act justly, love with tenderness and mercy and walk humbly with your God.” That, as individuals and families, is what God requires of us this Lent and any time as “Families Walk the Talk”. n For a range of Marfam Lenten and Easter publications see www.mar fam.org.za.

This week we congratulate: March 28: Bishop Jan De Groef of Bethlehem on the 8th anniversary of his episcopal ordination.

Prayer for the intercession of Archbishop Denis Hurley OMI

The

Liturgical Calendar Year A – Weekdays Cycle Year 1 Sunday March 26, 4th Sunday of Lent 1 Samuel 16:1, 6-7, 10-13, Psalms 23:1-6, Ephesians 5:8-14, John 9:1-41 Monday March 27 Isaiah 65:17-21, Psalms 30:2,4-6,11-13, John 4:43-54 Tuesday March 28 Ezekiel 47: 1-9,12, Psalms 46:2-3,5-6,8-9, John 5:1-16 Wednesday March 29 Isaiah 49:8-15, Psalms 145:8-9,13-14,1718 John 5:17-30 Thursday March 30 Exodus 32:7-14, Psalms 106:19-23, John 5: 31-47 Friday March 31 Wisdom 2: 1,12-22, Psalms 34:17-21,23, John 7: 1-2,10, 25-30 Saturday April 1 Jeremiah 11:18-20, Psalms 7:2-3,9-12, John 7: 40-53 Sunday April 2, 5th Sunday of Lent Ezekiel 37: 12-14, Psalms 130:1-8, Romans 8:8-11, John 11:1-45

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the

5th Sunday of Lent: April 2 Readings: Ezekiel 37:12-14; Psalm 130: 1-8; Romans 8:8-11; John 11:1-45

HE last enemy is Death; next Sunday we enter into Passiontide, the darkest part of our Lenten journey. And the question that the readings for next Sunday raise for us is: can God cope with the death that awaits us all? The first reading contemplates the Lord bringing to life those “dead bones” of the house of Israel: “I am opening your graves, and I shall make you come up from them, my people; and I shall make you come to the soil of Israel”. The “death” that they have endured is the appalling disaster of exile, which all too many people in our world have experienced; and the claim here is that God can indeed cope; and if we grasp that, then it will be true that “you will know that I am the Lord—I have spoken and I shall act. The oracle of the Lord”. This is strong language, but we are meant to take hope from it. The psalm for next Sunday is the “De Profundis” (“out of the depths”) which in our Catholic culture is inextricably linked with death. It is one of the songs that the people of Israel sang as they made their annual pil-

S outher n C ross

grimage up to Jerusalem; and it is a profound act of faith in the Lord who accompanied them on the pilgrimage. They are aware that they have sinned, but gently make the point that “if you take note of sins, Lord—who will stand?” And far more important is that “with you there is forgiveness…I waited for the Lord, my soul waits longingly”. Then comes a lovely image, from the hard work of the gallant night-watchmen on whom the city’s safety depends: “More than the watchmen for morning, watchmen for morning”, and the final confident flourish, that “God will redeem Israel from all their sins”. This is a God who can certainly deal with death. That is the God whom Paul proclaims in next Sunday’s second reading, which makes a characteristic contrast between “flesh” and “spirit” (humanity as respectively closed and open to God); and the Spirit, of course, is “the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead. The one who raised Jesus from the dead will also give life to our dying bodies, through his Spirit who dwells in us.

And that is what we hear narrated in the gospel; this is the extraordinary story of the effortless raising of Lazarus. One of the oddest things is that the evangelist tells us that “Jesus loved Martha and her sister, and Lazarus. And therefore, when he heard that he was sick he remained for two days in the place where he was”. The disciples (as so often) are likewise thoroughly puzzled, and still more so when Jesus finally agrees to go to Judea. They think it means death; and indeed it does, for he tells them that “Lazarus has fallen asleep”, which they interpret as having dozed off (“if he has fallen asleep he’ll be all right”), and have to have it explained to them that it is indeed death of which he speaks. Thomas, doubtful to the end, but loyal, mutters: “Let’s go along too in order to die with him.” So death is in the air, and that does not change when Jesus encounters Martha and Mary, both of whom say to him, reproachfully: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” With Martha that leads to the all-important revelation that “I

Nothing is ever really ours E

abbot because I need something, I no longer feel like a child. Rather, I feel like I’m properly in tune with the way things should be, in a gift-oriented universe within which none of us has a right to ultimately claim anything as one’s own.” This is moral and religious wisdom, but it’s a wisdom that goes against the dominant ethos within our culture and against some of our strongest inclinations. Both from without and from within, we hear voices telling us: If you cannot take what you desire, then you’re weak—and weak in a double way. First, you’re a weak person, too timid to fully claim what’s yours. Second, you’ve been weakened by religious and moral scruples so as to be incapable of seizing the day. To not claim what is yours, to not claim ownership, is not a virtue but a fault. It was those kinds of voices that this monk was hearing during his younger years, and because of them he felt resentful and immature.

ut Jesus wouldn’t echo these voices. The gospels make it pretty clear that Jesus would not look on so much that is assertive, aggressive and accumulative within our society—despite the praise and envy it receives—and see this as admirable, as healthily seizing the day. I doubt too that Jesus would share our admiration of the rich and famous who

Classic Conrad

VERYTHING is gift. That’s a principle that ultimately undergirds all spirituality, all morality, and every commandment. Everything is gift. Nothing can be ultimately claimed as our own. Genuine moral and religious sensitivity should make us aware of that. Nothing comes to us by right. This isn’t something we automatically know. During a class some years ago, a monk shared with me how, for all the early years of his religious life, he had been resentful because he had to ask permission of his abbot if he wanted anything. “I used to think it was silly—me, a grown man, supposedly an adult, having to ask a superior if I wanted something. If I wanted a new shirt, I would have to ask the abbot for permission to buy it. I thought it was ridiculous that a grown man was reduced to being like a child.” But there came a day when he felt differently. “I am not sure of all the reasons, but one day I came to realise that there was a purpose and wisdom in having to ask permission for everything. I came to realise that nothing is ours by right and nothing may be taken as owned. Everything’s a gift. Everything needs to be asked for. We need to be grateful to the universe and to God just for giving us a little space,” he said. “Now, when I ask permission from the

Nicholas King SJ

Death: The last enemy

‘it looks to me like an acute case of hotcrossbunitis’

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Sunday Reflections

am the Resurrection and the Life”; and this then deepens into her own confession that “I have come to faith that you are the Messiah, the Son of God who is coming into the world”. The encounter with Mary is less overtly theological, but we are invited to pay attention to her tears, and to those of Jesus. This makes the onlookers comment “look how he loved him”, though there is another group which feels that Jesus could have done more: “Could not the one who opened the eyes of the blind not have brought it about that [Lazarus] should not die?” Coping with death, you see, is very much on the agenda. However now we watch and marvel as Jesus shows what he can do; he simply gives orders (despite Martha’s common sense warning that “he is already stinking”): “Lazarus, come here—outside”. And, of course, he does, all wrapped in the grave-cloths. Can God cope with death?

Southern Crossword #751

Fr Ron Rolheiser OMI

Final Reflection

claim, as by right, their excessive wealth and status. When Jesus states that it is harder for a rich person to go to heaven than for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, he might have mitigated this by adding: “Unless, of course, the rich person, childlike, asks permission from the universe, from the community, and from God, every time he buys a shirt!” When Jesus tells us that children and the poor go to heaven more easily he is not idolising either their innocence or poverty. He’s idolising the need to recognise and admit our dependence. Ultimately we don’t provide for ourselves and nothing is ours by right. When I was in the Oblate novitiate, our novice master tried to impress upon us the meaning of religious poverty by making us write inside of every book that was given us the Latin words “Ad Usum”. Latin for: For use. The idea was that, although this book was given to you for your personal use, you ultimately did not own it. It’s yours just temporarily. We were then told that this was true of everything else given us for our personal use, from our toothbrushes to the shirts on our backs. They were not really ours, but merely given us for our use. One of the young men in that novitiate eventually left the order and became a medical doctor. He remains a close friend and he once shared with me how even today, as a doctor, he still writes those words, “Ad Usum”, inside all his books. “I don’t belong to a religious order and don’t have the vow of poverty, but that principle our novice master taught us is just as valid for me in the world as it is for any professed religious. Ultimately we don’t own anything. Those books aren’t mine, really. They’ve been given me, temporarily, for my use. Nothing belongs to anybody and it’s good never to forget that!” It’s not a bad thing as an adult to have to ask permission to buy a new shirt. It reminds us that the universe belongs to everyone and that all of us should be deeply grateful that it gives us even a little space.

aCroSS

5. Africa’s harbours take in the money (4) 7. God’s summons (6,4) 8. Self-satisfied (4) 10. Enter heaven like these (Mt 18) (8) 11. Prelate on board (6) 12. Policeman who could be a conductor (6) 14. Head place of worship? (6) 16. Holds tightly (6) 17. Pot for magic brews (8) 19. Twilight (4) 21. Priest in the armed forces? (10) 22. Irritation you may long for (4) Solutions on page 11

doWN

1. Day in the middle of Roman month (4) 2. Royal sovereignty at sea (8) 3. It features in minor storm (6) 4. He has a wild obsession (6) 5. Clothed (4) 6. Supreme rulers with old coins (10) 9. Unanimated about your family member (6,4) 13. Kneeling desk for French prayers? (4-4) 15. Mistakes of your ways (6) 16. Honest like Frank (6) 18. Some flashing picture of the scourge (4) 20. Thoughtful Afrikaans child? (4)

CHURCH CHUCKLE

father and his son were at the rugby when dad asked the boy: “What are you giving up for Lent?” The boy replied: “I don’t know. What are you giving up?” “I’ve decided to give up liquor,” dad replied. At half-time dad bought himself beer. His son objected: “Hey, I thought you were giving up liquor!” Dad answered: “Hard liquor, son. I’m giving up hard liquor. This is just beer.” To which the boy replied: “Well, in that case, for Lent I’m giving up hard biscuits.”

Hurley Memorial Pilgrimage Presented by the Denis Hurley Centre

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11 to 21 September 2017

led by Bishop Barry Wood with Raymond Perrier

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